Closing Date: 18th December, 2025
Description:
Summary:The Office of the Solicitor acts as legal counsel to the USPTO on intellectual property law matters and also works in collaboration with the Department of Commerce on interagency intellectual property law matters. The work is challenging, the atmosphere is professional, and the diverse attorneys enjoy a high quality of work life rarely found in the legal field.
Duties:
The physical worksite for this position is located in Alexandria,Virginia.This position is telework eligible per agency and business unit discretion/policy.
This position is located in the Office of the General Counsel, Office of the Solicitor and provides support for patent and trademark litigation related to patent operations.
This role is the ideal next career step for you if you look foward to:
- Providing legal counsel to the USPTO Director on intellectual property matters.
- Defending decisions of the Director, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, and the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board in federal district courts and appellate courts.
- Preparing and filing amicus briefs on behalf of the Director on issues of importance to the development of patent or trademark law.
- Coordinating with the Department of Commerce (DOC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) to assist the Solicitor General in intellectual property cases before the United States Supreme Court..
- Managing all aspects of cases, including case strategy, motions practice, oral arguments, written discovery, depositions, and trial if necessary.
- Assisting the Deputy General Counsel and Director of the Office of Enrollment and Discipline, and prosecuting practitioners charged with misconduct before an Administrative Judge (and if necessary, defending those decisions in district court and before the Federal Circuit
Requirements:
Conditions of Employment:
- Applications will only be accepted from United States Citizens and Nationals.
- Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related competencies.
- You must meet the definition of specialized experience.
- Required to pass a background investigation and fingerprint check.
- Must be registered for Selective Service, if applicable (www.sss.gov) Suitable for Federal employment.
- If selected, you may be required to complete a two-year trial period.
- You must meet all qualification requirements upon the closing date of this announcement.
Qualifications:
You must meet the United States Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) qualification requirements (including specialized experience and/or educational requirements) for the advertised position. You must meet all eligibility and qualifications requirements by the closing date of the job announcement. OPM Qualifications Standards are available at Patent Attorney Series. (https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/1200/patent-attorney-series-1222/)
Specialized Experienceis experience that has equipped applicants with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level in the federal service. For this position, the next lower grade level is a GS-14.
Qualified applicants should possess both specialized experience and professional experience as listed below:
Specialized experience for this position includes:
- Experience in (i) primary drafting responsibility for briefs, memos, and legal opinions in the area of patent law; and
- (ii) independently conducting legal research and preparing written analyses of complex and difficult legal, factual, or policy issues in the area of patent law.
And
Professional Experience is defined as legal experience that demonstrates that the applicant possesses the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled. Applicants must possess a minimum of four (4) years of professional law/legal experience, post J.D. as described below:
And
Professional Legal/Law Experience is defined as having experience including judicial clerkship(s), in the area of patent litigation. Patent litigation includes federal district court patent cases, patent appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and trial proceedings in patent cases before the International Trade Commission and the USPTO's Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The ideal candidate also has professional experience and substantive knowledge in the area of trademark and/or copyright law.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
Education:
Applicants must possess a degree in one of the scientific/engineering disciplines.
And
You must possess a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree or Master of Laws (L.L.M) degree from an American Bar Association from an accredited law school and an active bar membership of any State, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, or any Territorial Court under the U.S. Constitution.
If this position requires proof of higher education, or you are substituting education for experience, you must submit an unofficial transcript or a list of courses that includes the following information: name of accredited institution, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. Please refer to General Schedule Qualification Policies (http://www.opm.gov/) for more information. You are not required to submit official documents at this time; copies are sufficient.
Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Qualifying education from colleges and universities in foreign countries must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website - US Department of Education (http://www.ed.gov/). Another listing of services that can perform this evaluation is available at the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) (http://www.naces.org/) website. You must provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing along with your application. Failure to provide such documentation when requested will result in lost consideration.
NOTE: Only education and experience acquired before the filing deadline will be considered. Report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Additional Information:
If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System. If you are exempt from registration under Selective Service Law, you must provide appropriate proof of exemption. Please visit the Selective Service System (http://www.sss.gov/) website for more information.
This is a Non Bargaining Unit position.
This is a Public Trust position and has a risk level designation of "HIGH RISK".
Background Investigation - If selected for this position, you may be required to complete a Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306), which includes a fingerprint and credit check, to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation.
The USPTO participates in E-Verify. For more information on E-Verify, please visit the Department of Homeland Security Website. (https://www.e-verify.gov/)
Trial Period - If selected, you may be required to complete a two-year trial period.
All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choice.
Financial disclosure statement (OGE Form 450) is required for this position. For more information please visit www.OGE.govRelocation Expenses are not authorized and will not be paid.
Relocation Expenses are not authorized and will not be paid.
More than one selection may be made from this announcement if additional identical vacancies in the same title, series, grade, and unit occur within 90 days from the date the certificate was issued.
All application materials become the property of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
USPTO Job Applicants requiring reasonable acco
Professional Legal/Law Experience is defined as having experience including judicial clerkship(s), in the area of patent litigation. Patent litigation includes federal district court patent cases, patent appeals to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, and trial proceedings in patent cases before the International Trade Commission and the USPTO's Patent Trial and Appeal Board. The ideal candidate also has professional experience and substantive knowledge in the area of trademark and/or copyright law.
Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.
Education:
Applicants must possess a degree in one of the scientific/engineering disciplines.
And
You must possess a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree or Master of Laws (L.L.M) degree from an American Bar Association from an accredited law school and an active bar membership of any State, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, or any Territorial Court under the U.S. Constitution.
If this position requires proof of higher education, or you are substituting education for experience, you must submit an unofficial transcript or a list of courses that includes the following information: name of accredited institution, grades earned, completion dates, and quarter and semester hours earned. Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. Please refer to General Schedule Qualification Policies (http://www.opm.gov/) for more information. You are not required to submit official documents at this time; copies are sufficient.
Special Instructions for Foreign Education: Qualifying education from colleges and universities in foreign countries must be evaluated in terms of equivalency to that acquired in U.S. colleges and universities. Applicants educated in whole or in part in foreign countries must submit sufficient evidence, including transcripts, to an accredited private organization for an equivalency evaluation of course work and degree. A listing of these accredited organizations can be found on the Department of Education's website - US Department of Education (http://www.ed.gov/). Another listing of services that can perform this evaluation is available at the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) (http://www.naces.org/) website. You must provide a copy of the letter containing the results of the equivalency evaluation with a course by course listing along with your application. Failure to provide such documentation when requested will result in lost consideration.
NOTE: Only education and experience acquired before the filing deadline will be considered. Report only attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Additional Information:
If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System. If you are exempt from registration under Selective Service Law, you must provide appropriate proof of exemption. Please visit the Selective Service System (http://www.sss.gov/) website for more information.
This is a Non Bargaining Unit position.
This is a Public Trust position and has a risk level designation of "HIGH RISK".
Background Investigation - If selected for this position, you may be required to complete a Declaration for Federal Employment (OF-306), which includes a fingerprint and credit check, to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation.
The USPTO participates in E-Verify. For more information on E-Verify, please visit the Department of Homeland Security Website. (https://www.e-verify.gov/)
Trial Period - If selected, you may be required to complete a two-year trial period.
All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choice.
Financial disclosure statement (OGE Form 450) is required for this position. For more information please visit www.OGE.govRelocation Expenses are not authorized and will not be paid.
Relocation Expenses are not authorized and will not be paid.
More than one selection may be made from this announcement if additional identical vacancies in the same title, series, grade, and unit occur within 90 days from the date the certificate was issued.
All application materials become the property of the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
USPTO Job Applicants requiring reasonable acco
